Permeation study of indomethacin from polycarbazole/natural rubber blend film for electric field controlled transdermal delivery

Abstract

The transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) is an alternative route to the transport of medical species into the blood system through the skin. This method has been continuously developed and improved to overcome limitations and is now suitable for a wide variety of drug molecules. In this work, the influence of the electric field and conductive polymer used for the drug delivery system was investigated. Indomethacin, an anti-inflammatory drug, was loaded into polycarbazole (PCz), which is a conductive polymer to promote the efficient transportation of the drug. The drug-loaded PCz was blended with natural rubber (NR) to form a transdermal patch. The permeation of indomethacin in phosphate- buffered saline (PBS) buffer (pH 7.4) through PCz/DCNR film was carried out by a modified Franz diffusion cell at a maintained temperature at 37 ℃. UV-visible spectrometer was used to detect the amount of drug released. The results confirmed that an electric field can improve the diffusion of drug from a membrane through the skin by generating electro repulsive force.